The Hebrew month of Elul started a few days ago – which means Rosh Hashanah, the Day of Judgement will be here in less than a month. As Rabbi Alan Lew z”l said of Rosh Hashanah, Standing in the light of God, you can see a great deal more than you ordinarily might, but...
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I enjoyed Aryeh Green’s book “My Israel Trail” for a very different reason than most readers of this brief review: I have so many personal connections to the things he wrote about it’s not even funny. I even get a mention in the book, as Aryeh and I met on the trail; given how...
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A former student of mine sent me a message asking “how does one become more spiritual in Judaism, how does one find God in prayer? I’ve been struggling with this as of late.” Other people have asked me the same thing in the past. I figured my answer would make a good blog post;...
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As I write this, Tisha b’Av has just started here in Denver, Colorado where I’m hanging out at the moment. I thought about going to the synagogue for the traditional recitation of Eicha, Lamentations, but even from a distance I just can’t connect with the words of Eicha, and the imagery of Jerusalem destroyed,...
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Note: the argument in the photo was at the Western Wall a few years ago, when some ultra-Orthodox men were threatening women trying to peacefully pray with Women of the Wall (including one of my daughters), and I came to their defense. No fisticuffs ensued: they backed off and left the women alone. When...
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This week’s Torah portion has a lesson on the benefits of order. The 12 tribes are organized into four camps. Each camp placed around the Tent of Meeting. Every camp in its position, every tribe in its spot in the camp, all personnel accounted for. Everyone with a role. The Torah tells us “The...
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